St Piran’s Day

2013

Check out the Google analytics for St Pirans Day itself, we had over 1,000 visits and over 60 of you voted to make St Pirans Day a bank holiday!

St Piran – The patron saint of Cornwall

St Piran, the patron saint of Cornwall is said to have landed at the sandy shores of Cornwall at Perranporth.

Perranporth 2012

Legend says that Piran originated from Ireland, cast to sea tied to a millstone on the order of the Irish King who was suspicious of Piran’s miraculous powers. Piran survived stormy seas and arrived at Perranporth where he built an oratory to promote Christianity (his first disciples were said to be a badger, a fox and a bear)

The oratory is now preserved in the sand dunes at Perran Sands.

Patron Saint of Tinners

Piran is famous for his accidental discover of tin, when a black stone on his fireplace got so hot that a white liquid leaked out; the first tin smelting. It was this discoverey that earned Piran the title ‘Patron Saint of Tinners’, tin mining being the backbone of Cornish industry. This discovery also formed the basis of the Cornish flag, the white hot tin on the black of the ore.

According to legend St Piran was fond of a tipple or two, despite his tipples, he is said to have lived to the age of 206.

St Piran’s day celebrations continue to grow in popularity, with the annual St Piran Play on Perran Sands a highlight, hundreds of people making a pilgrimage to the site of the oratory and other landmarks.